Shotgun Kowboy nabs emotional 10th Remington Park win
Owner-trainer-breeder C.R. Trout’s daughter Shelby gave her dad a second lump in his throat Thursday night as they left the winner’s circle.
The first came when Trout’s millionaire horse Shotgun Kowboy won the track's featured $45,912 allowance race, bringing him nearer to becoming the first horse to ever earn $1 million in races at Remington Park. Then Shelby saw something out of the corner of her eye.
“Look, Dad!” she said. “Look what (Remington Park) did.”
On the video screen a message read, “Get well soon, Arletta Trout.” Arletta is Trout’s wife, who has been in and out of the intensive care unit in an Oklahoma City hospital for weeks after heart surgery. She is also the one who named Shotgun Kowboy when he was a baby.
“She didn’t tell anyone what she named him; we just found out when the foal papers came out,” Trout, of Edmond, Okla., said. “I don’t argue with her. She’s come up with some funky names and we just go on with it, but this was a good one. This win tonight will make her smile. She looked better today than she has in a long time.”
Shotgun Kowboy drew away with ease under jockey David Cabrera to win by 2-1/4 lengths over Chris and Dave, the 4-1 second choice. United Patriot ran third, another three lengths back.
Shotgun Kowboy, a 7-year-old gelded son of Kodiack Kowboy, won $28,343 from the $45,912 purse to boost his earnings at Remington Park to $958,637. He is scheduled to race next in the $100,000 Jeffrey A. Hawk Memorial Stakes on closing day, Sunday, Dec. 15. If he were to win that race, he will be the first horse ever to make $1 million in Remington Park races.
In his career, Shotgun Kowboy has started 39 times, winning 15, running second five times and third another seven times. His lifetime bankroll ballooned to $1,536,584.
“I can remember about all his 10 wins at Remington Park,” Trout said. “It would tickle me to death if he could earn a million here. Remington Park has been so good to us. I can’t tell you how good.”
When Shotgun Kowboy won the $175,000 Oklahoma Classics Cup for the fourth time on Oct. 18, he had not visited a winner’s circle since Oct. 19, 2018, losing six in a row. Trout said they figured out what was wrong before his last race.
“His hooves had gotten shelly and his feet were hurting,” Trout said. “We got a horseshoer in who told us how to fix it and now he is back to his old self. You can just see how good he feels and wants to run.”
As far as racing him as an 8-year-old next year, Trout said he would let the horse decide that.
The heavy wagering favorite at 2-5 odds, Shotgun Kowboy paid $2.80 to win, $2.10 to place and $2.10 across the board. His winning time was 1:42.94 seconds after setting most of the internal fractions from the half-mile on. The first quarter-mile was :24.26 seconds and then Shotgun Kowboy hit the following poles in :48.47 for the half-mile, 1:13.52 for three-quarters of a mile and 1:38.74 for the mile.